Even those hiding under the O2 will be aware that the Olympics circus rolls into London on 27th July 2012.

The biggest sporting event in four years is mooted to provide millions of pounds to the UK’s depleted coffers.

However, originally set to cost 2.4bn, the final costs of staging the sporting extravanganza could top £24billion. So London's thousands of SME owners really need to start making some of that money back!

Before business owners start making their flyers and dreaming up special offers, let’s look at five the Olympics-friendly business investments buyers could make to jump onboard the Olympics cash cow.

Click to read more ...

How many businesses are truly maximising social media?

Many believe they just don’t have the time to sit down and work out what the opportunities are and how they can take advantage.  But this means they are missing out.

Facebook has 30 million users in the UK. However it is not the quantity of potential customers that makes it such a good vehicle for communicating messages, but quality.

Click to read more ...

Being shy at work can cripple career and social life. 

Toastmasters want to to provide a mutually supportive environment for improving public speaking and leadership skills. 
 
Here are eight tips to help others overcome their shyness when it comes to presenting and talking to large groups:

1. Remember nerves are normal everyone gets them.  

2. Stop thinking about what will happen if you forget what you are going to say. Instead think about “how much value can I give to my audience?”, “how can I make it fun for my audience and for me?”

3. Remind yourself you are there to give your audience the gift of your experience, knowledge and expertise.

4. If you get the opportunity beforehand - chat to the audience. It will help you feel more like you’re talking to a group of friends.

Click to read more ...

Stick to your working hours and close the door on your work when the day is done.

So says Cat Foulkes, franchise recruitment manager at thebestof.co.uk, a marketing and promotions business and multi award-winning home-based franchise.

“You need to create as close to a working environment at home as you can," says Cat. "Our most successful franchisees treat working at home in exactly the same way they would the office.

“They get up at the same time, they begin work at the same time and they don't allow distractions and interruptions to dictate their day.

“Stick to your boundaries regarding your work space and work hours and be sure to close the door and relax once the working day is done.”  

Commonsense advice you might think, and yet so many people let their social and work lives bleed into one another. It's certainly a point worth reiterating, to yourself and to others! Great advice.

A home-based business has few start-up costsWant to make money without having to embark on a lengthy training programme?

Want a lucrative business opportunity without the need for huge experience in the inustry?

Fancy yourself an entrepreneur but not much in the way of savings?

I've compiled a list of sectors characterised by being relatively easy to run, requiring few specialist skills and relatively low start-up costs.

Vending franchises >>

Home-based businesses for sale >>

Bargain stores for sale >>

Snack bars for sale >>

Distribution franchises >>

It's what you’ve been waiting for all week, not world peace, not even a million bucks, but information on the top 5 industries which have grown in the last year.

As a quick recap, Recruiter Reed’s annual Job Index reveals that the number of full-time jobs available on its website increased by 17% in December 2011, compared to the same period in 2010, suggesting a big rise in interest in certain sectors. Hurrah!

See here for the tenth to sixth business sectors with the largest growth...but before I show you number five to one, a little bit of sad news.

Reed’s Job Index may have seen growth, but it also saw numbers drop in jobs available for some sectors. It seems that the public sector, especially education and social care showed a large annual decline.

But do not fear, this can be seen as good news for the small business buyer, who will work in the private sector. Stop working for the MAN and start working for yourself.

Here are the top five business sectors which have seen the most growth in the last year.

5. IT and Telecoms jobs had risen by 41% - Everyone loves the world wide web, well if the number of hours I spend looking at pictures of kittens and puppies online is any indicator, so perhaps consider buying a business in the software, telecoms, or computer resale markets?

Click to read more ...

It might come as shock to discover that even in a (whisper it) ‘second recession’

certain employment and small business markets in the UK have expanded.

Recruiter Reed’s annual Job Index reveals that the number of full-time jobs available on its website increased by 17% in December 2011, compared to the same period in 2010.

Reed broke down this growth by sector, providing us some very interesting information. Below are the top 11 sectors with the highest annual increases in jobs,

coupled with suggestions for business opportunities you could take up to get in on the act:

Click to read more ...

The internet has made starting a new business simple. In theory anyone can be a bedroom entrepreneur with just a computer, an internet connection and a great idea.

However just building a website and putting it out there isn’t enough. You need to think carefully about what your website is saying about your business and whether it’s fulfilling its potential as a useful tool to help your venture grow.

Yell’s web design team has come up with five questions you should ask yourself when planning a business website:

Click to read more ...

Nelson Mandella Bridge, JohannesburgThe US recovery is gathering pace, but the prospect of a messy Eurozone collapse threatens to pull the rest of the advanced economies down with Europe.

China's breakneck growth was briefly checked while inflation threatened to get out of control, although the rising superpower seems to have largely weathered the storm.

Economic forecasts make a fool out of the most accomplished economists, but there are some clearly discernable trends which might influence prospective business buyers who are open-minded about their choice of sector.

Here are my five tips for choosing a business to buy in 2012.

Click to read more ...

By Greg Secker, ex-vice president of investment bank Mellon Financial Corporation and founder and CEO of Knowledge to Action:

1. Know when to cut your losses

Regardless of how much experience you’ve got, or how much money you’ve previously made, anyone is capable of making a bad call, and a key part of being a successful trader is learning how to recognise a mistake and having the conviction to shut down a trade that’s losing. 

Interestingly, although trading is viewed as a male dominated arena, women often make better traders than men, partly because of their ability to close down a losing trade before too much damage is done.

Click to read more ...

The working week would be infinitely duller without the dulcet tones of cheering music seeing us through till hometime.

Songwriters are constantly capturing commerce in rhythm and lyrics and tunes resonate regardless of whether you are a CEO taking meetings at 10pm or a paperboy on a cold morning.

Here are six business-themed songs to inspire us during work and beyond:

Click to read more ...

Neil Kuschel, Sales Director at DHL Express discusses how SMEs can export for the first time...

The government announcement of £95m funding for SMEs by banks to invest and target export markets is a welcome move, especially as our own report has recently shown that while UK export levels are increasing, the rate of growth has slowed to just 3%.

SMEs should take this opportunity to secure funding to help expand into international markets which is critical to experiencing growth when domestic trade is tough.

Combined with favourable exchange rates and the maintenance of the 0.5% interest rate, the time is ripe for SMEs to enter markets not previously considered - from Australia to Argentina, there are unexplored opportunities across the globe.

Click to read more ...

UK's Leading Hat Pin Business >>
Ledbury, Herefordshire, UK
£16,000

Edible birds nest supplier >>
Makati, Manila
$30,000

Dog hotel and hydrotherapy centre >>
Devon, UK
£875,000

Party bus business >>
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
$349,000

Floating restaurant >>
Port Louis, Mauritius
$1.5m

To mark Global Entrepreneurship Week running from 14-20 November, spot factoring provider, The Interface Financial Group (IFG) is inviting potential business owners to investigate an alternative route into business.

The annual event, which takes place in over 100 countries and was launched in 2008, will see hundreds of events taking place around the country, and connects budding entrepreneurs with inspiring people who have made a success of their business.

IFG is marking the occasion by reminding would-be entrepreneurs that, with the UK ranked outside the world top ten for ease of starting a new business, investing in a franchise could be a prudent alternative to a blank-page new venture.

Given the current economic climate there is extra risk associated with starting a new business, which can be daunting and challenging at the best of times.

However, statistics show franchises are more likely to survive and, unlike some franchise providers, IFG offers a comprehensive start-up programme which includes marketing in its package of life-long support for its franchisees. 

Click to read more ...

The anti-capitalist protesters have managed to shut down St Paul’s Cathedral.

Have they successfully drawn attention to the evils of capitalism?

BOB wants to celebrate this beautiful building which hasn’t been shut down since WW2.

However, if the protesters decide if they can’t beat ‘em they may as well join them capitalist masses, here are few suggestions for what they could do with St Paul's:

Click to read more ...

A controversial figure recently given her freedom, Amanda Knox has probably spent the last four years dreaming of the fine things she will do if she ever walks free.

Now that she is able to choose how she spends her days, we’re happy to offer Knox some appealing and alternative career paths, should she become bored of weighing up TV interview offers and partying: 

Click to read more ...

You might have heard Foursquare mentioned in conversation and assumed it was just another social network.

However, it's location-based system that allows users to ‘check-in’ to businesses from their mobile phone could benefit the savvy small business.

Here’s how Foursquare could drive footfall to your company:

Click to read more ...

You had an idea for a business and followed through on it.

Now you have a thriving business.

Anyone that has started a business realizes there comes a time when you want to either retire from the business or sell it to someone that can take the business to the next level. Entering into negotiations with a potential buyer can be very stressful.

Here are 10 tips on how to keep organized when selling your business.

Click to read more ...

Internet Cafe With Virtual Office For Sale >>
Faro, Portugal
Asking price: €15,000
Sales revenue: €500,000
Established in 2009 this welcoming internet cafe combines with a virtual office and is situated in a prime location in the touristic village of Faro, 100 metres from the Marina.

Home-based Organic T-shirt And Bag Printer For Sale >>
East Sussex, UK
Asking price: £3,900
Sales revenue: £0-£200,000
Prints fashionable organic cotton T-shirts and Jute printed bags with various designs, capitalising on massive and growing demand for organic and fair trade goods.

Online Game Business For Sale >>
San Jose, US
Asking price: $170,000
Sales revenue: $500,000-$1m
Fun and simple online betting game available in various languages (Spanish, French, Italian, Portuguese, English and German).

Travel Agency In Sofia For Sale >>
Location: Sofia, Bulgaria
Asking price: $65,000
Sales revenue: Undisclosed
Sells spa, mountain, sea, city and family hotels in Bulgaria with proven quality. the agency provides mainly individual bookings.

Aquarium For Sale >>
Location: Cebu, Phillippines
Asking price: $120,000
Sales revenue: $60,000
Once-in-a-lifetime chance to acquire a unique business with the benefit of fully trained staff that know how to operate the aquarium and look after the fish and the visitors.

Europe's largest trader coaching company is holding a series of FREE workshops on how to get started as a private financial trader.

Knowledge to Action, a Sunday Times FastTrack 100 Winner founded by a trader so successful he retired from the job aged just 27, will show you how to generate cash in rising and falling stock markets and understand the risk-management formula that keeps risk to a maximum of 1% of your balance, among other things.

There are four compelling advantages to being a private financial trader:

• Cheap to start: You need only a laptop, an internet connection, some software and professional trading to get started
• Flexible: you can trade from anywhere at any time you want
• Low risk: You can limit the risk to less than 1% of your account balance without sacrificing the huge profit potential
• Tax-free trading: All profits are 100% exempt from tax under UK tax law and subject to no commissions or fees